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Explanation of the Mass - The Preparation of the Gifts

The Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the preparation of the gifts. The Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist are not two different acts of worship, but two moments of one same mystery. The change from the Liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Eucharist is well marked by the movement of the minister leaving his seat he goes to the altar, which is reserved for the sacrifice.

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A Significant Moment in Our Prayer: The Presentation of the Gifts

Occasionally, you might hear someone jokingly refer to “halftime” during Mass — the interval following the Prayers of the Faithful, as the Liturgy of the Eucharist begins. It can be easy, even tempting, to zone out as you sit, waiting for the collection basket to make its way to your pew.  

But if you pay attention, you’ll have the opportunity to enter into something deeper — a significant moment in our prayer.

It’s mentioned by St. Justin Martyr, one of the earliest Christian writers, when describing the Mass in the second century, “Bread is brought up and wine and water…”  

This practice, of people bringing up the gifts, has been part of our Catholic tradition from the very beginning. Although we might think of this action as being merely practical, in reality, it serves a much deeper spiritual purpose.  

Each Sunday Mass, a member or family of the parish volunteers to bring forward “the gifts” — the bread and wine, which are fruit of God’s creation. Through the effort of human hands, these are made into the gifts that we present to the Lord.  

Certainly, the offertory collected during the Mass also serves to represent the work and sacrifices of the previous week. Sharing our monetary “treasures” is one of the ways that we embrace stewardship. It’s an opportunity to generously give back to the Lord, from the fruit of our work.  

In his book What Happens At Mass , Fr. Jeremy Driscoll, OSB, explains, “We should not think of the collection of money at this point as some sort of banal, dirty but necessary affair. Money is our work. Money is hours of our lives. And now we give it away, we sacrifice it, for the work of the Church.”

In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul instructs Christians to “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” (Romans 12:1).  

The physical act of carrying the gifts of bread and wine forward to the priest is meant to serve as a tangible reminder of the fact that we are all called to stewardship and, most importantly, that we are gathering at the table to share in the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith.

Those who bring forward the gifts each week have the privilege and responsibility of remembering what their action represents — that we are called to give generously of our time, talent and treasure to God, who gives us His very self, at Mass. And for those sitting in the pews, tempted to “check out” for a few minutes, seeing the gifts being brought forward should serve as a powerful reminder to offer our lives back to God, through serving and honoring Him.

For more information on Gift Families, please contact Sarah McKinzie, 812-219-2903, [email protected].

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Diocesan News

  • Ask the Register: how do I bring up the gifts?

Q. My family and I have been asked to bring up the gifts at Mass on several occasions, but I’m not sure if I’m doing it quite right. What are you supposed to do when you bring up the gifts at Mass, and what is the purpose behind the practice?

A. Thank you for this very practical question that is probably on the minds of many people. Oftentimes, it is the duty of the ushers to choose a family to present the gifts to the celebrant of the Mass, but there is usually little instruction given ahead of time.

the presentation of the gifts

The preparation of the gifts occurs during a time of transition in the Mass. Having been fed and nourished by the Word of God in the Liturgy of the Word, the faithful prepare to be fed and nourished through the Holy Eucharist, in which they receive the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ.

The Eucharist is all about the offering of sacrifice. The Mass is the re-presentation of Christ’s offering of himself to the Heavenly Father. And then this gift of Christ to the Father pours forth to the Church in the reception of Holy Communion. Christ offers himself as a sacrifice to the Father, and in doing so he also offers himself to the Church in giving us his very body and blood.

Since the Eucharist is the celebration of Christ’s spousal love for His Church, it is meant to have the full, conscious and active participation of the faithful. The faithful accomplish this by giving of themselves at Mass, and allowing themselves to be transformed by the power of the sacred mysteries.

This desire to be transformed is symbolized in the presentation of gifts, which is much more than simply a sentimental gesture. The people taking up the gifts at Mass represent the people of the parish and, in a sense, the entire Church. They bring up bread and wine; perhaps even the collection from that Mass: all as signs of the gifts God has given us and are returned back to him.

Thus, as we watch the people process down the aisle to bring these gifts at Mass, we think of all we have received from God and ask him to transform us by his saving action.

It’s understandable to be a little nervous in bringing up the gifts. The norm is to process down the aisle with the gifts and hand them to the celebrant at the foot of the altar. It’s customary to bow to the altar or genuflect to the tabernacle before you return to your pew. Don’t be afraid! In presenting the gifts, you are carrying the very bread and wine that will be changed substantially into the Body and Blood of Christ.

This question was answered by a priest of the Diocese of Lincoln. Write to Ask the Register using our  online form,  or write to 3700 Sheridan Blvd., Suite 10, Lincoln NE 68506-6100. All questions are subject to editing. Editors decide which questions to publish. Personal questions cannot be answered. People with such questions are urged to take them to their nearest Catholic priest.

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Why do we present gifts during Mass?

The preparation of the gifts is also called the “offertory,” and it assumed great importance in the early church.

St. Cyprian, martyred in Africa in 258, chided those who came to Mass and received the Eucharist but made no offering of their own: “You are wealthy and rich, and do you think that you celebrate the Lord’s Supper, not at all considering the offering? Who comes to the Lord’s Supper without a sacrifice, and yet take part of the sacrifice which the poor man has offered? Consider in the Gospel the widow… ”

St. Augustine was impressed by a fifth-century procession of gifts in Rome in which the faithful brought from their own homes things from their kitchen tables.

Augustine called this an “admirable exchange” — for their gifts God gave back Jesus. The prayer over the gifts from the sixth day in the octave of Christmas uses Augustine’s language: “Lord, receive our gifts in this wonderful exchange: from all you have given us we bring you these gifts, and in return, you give us yourself.”

Valid matter

For Mass, the Church uses unleavened bread made only of pure wheat flour and water, and wine only from grapes. Why?

Because that’s what Jesus used. He told us to “do this” in his memory, and if “this” changes too much, we’re no longer following his command.

Even in places of the world where wheat or grapes are scarce, the church still insists that these foodstuffs be imported instead of substituted with local products such as corn flour or rice wine. For persons with celiac disease or alcohol intolerance, the church permits virtually gluten-free hosts and mustum, wine whose fermentation has been arrested.

Collection of money

“From the very beginning, Christians have brought, along with the bread and wine for the Eucharist, gifts to share with those in need” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1351). Tithing and almsgiving are acts of worship (2 Corinthians 9:10-15) and express not only our desire to help those in need but also our generosity to God.

Made by hand

The ordinary form of Mass uses adapted Jewish “berakah” (blessing) prayers whose words are packed with meaning, even if they’re done silently during the music.

Bread and wine symbolize a wonderful cooperation between God and humans. We lay upon the altar not only creation’s goods but ours, too. The gifts are not mere wheat and grapes, but “the work of human hands.” Symbolically, that’s us on the altar, offering ourselves to God. In the eucharistic prayer, we will ask God to send the Spirit to change the gifts and change us as well.

The gift of ourselves is never easy, and the church, knowing that, treats our offerings with great care. The priest places them in a dignified place on the altar, incenses them reverently, and asks God to receive them to himself.

“Pray, sisters and brothers, that our sacrifice” — not only bread and wine, but what they symbolize: our work, struggles, joys, money, our very lives — “may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.”

© 2007 Rev. Thomas Margevicius Used with permission.

The Record Newspaper - Covering the Catholic Community of Central Kentucky

Liturgy Matters — Presentation of the Gifts

By Dr. Judy Bullock

What is the significance of the Presentation of the Gifts at Mass?

Judy-Bullock-2013-w

The congregation is seated. The hospitality ministers take up the collection. Members of the assembly prepare to bring the bread and wine to the altar along with gifts for the poor.

In the early church the people brought the bread they had baked and the wine they had made in their homes for the liturgy. In this way it was clear that these gifts of bread and wine represented the people, “the work of human hands.” Over time this ministry became the purview of specialists, as monasteries and religious communities produced the hosts and wine for Mass.

For those old enough to remember the pre-Vatican II liturgy, you may recall that the priest, usually entering from a side door near the altar, brought the bread and wine to the altar as he entered at the beginning of Mass.

With the liturgical revisions of Vatican II the church recommended a gift procession where members of the congregation carry the bread, wine and gifts for the poor through the assembly to the altar. This ritual sought to recapture the same spiritual intent of the early church liturgy. The procession through the assembly brings attention to this offering, hoping to make it clearer that it comes from all the people.

After the gifts have been placed on the altar and the altar prepared, the priest celebrant prays, “Pray, brothers and sisters, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.”

The rest of the assembly responds, “May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of his name, for our good and the good of all his holy church.”

Today if asked what their part in the Presentation of the Gifts includes, many would still say that it is their contribution to the collection. Even though the collection is an important support for the work of the church, it is not the most significant part of this rite.

Our part in this presentation of gifts and preparation for the great Eucharistic Prayer is our intention to offer ourselves to the Father with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. In the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, the church expresses this intention that the “faithful not only offer this unblemished sacrificial Victim but also learn to offer their very selves, and so day by day to be brought, through the mediation of Christ, into unity with God and with each other, so that God may at last be all in all.”

Our sacrifice is to turn ourselves over to God with a willingness to let go of those things that keep us from being Christlike. We are asked to offer our very lives to the Lord, as a living sacrifice. At Communion, when we receive that very bread and wine that we brought to the altar that has been transformed by the Holy Spirit into the Body and Blood of Christ, we pray that we too may be transformed, one body in Christ.

St. Augustine’s prayer says this very well, “May we become what we receive.”

Dr. Judy Bullock is the director of the Archdiocese of Louisville’s Office of Worship.

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Preparation of the Gifts

A ZENIT DAILY DISPATCH

ROME, 24 AUG. 2004 (ZENIT)

Answered by Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum Pontifical University.

Q: For daily Mass my parish priest prepares the chalice before the celebration with the wine and water in the sacristy. So when it is time for the Liturgy of the Eucharist he just takes the chalice with wine and water and continues on with the prayers. Does the Church allow this? — D.O., Toronto. Is there any reason why the bread and wine are offered with separate prayers at the presentation of gifts at Mass? Is it acceptable for the priest to say one prayer over the bread and wine, combining the two prayers? — D.C., Carenage, Trinidad and Tobago

A: The practice described of preparing wine and water beforehand is not quite correct, although unfortunately not uncommon in some quarters.

There is no good reason to do so since the time "saved" is minimal. And, of course, saving time is not an overly important criterion in liturgy.

There are certainly times when rites must necessarily be abbreviated, but abbreviation does not imply hastiness.

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), No. 73, permits the chalice to be prepared at the credence table rather than at the altar, but always during the preparation of the gifts.

It is usually preferable, however, to prepare the chalice at the altar so that the faithful may observe the meaningful rite of adding the water to the wine. An earlier column dealt with this rite.

It is possible to prepare additional chalices before large concelebrations. But the preparation of the principal chalice should still preferably be carried out at the altar by the deacon and offered by the main celebrant.

A priest may not take it upon himself to change the liturgical text by offering a single prayer over the gifts just as he may not change other liturgical texts.

The practice of a separate offering of the bread and wine is a long-standing liturgical tradition which is found in one form or another in all the ancient manuscripts of the Roman rite, even though this rite has undergone many changes over time.

Some other rites, such as the Armenian and the ancient Hispanic (or Mozarabic) of Spain, do have a single prayer over both gifts. But, unlike the Roman rite, some of these rites have minute and painstaking ceremonies for preparing the gifts just before Mass begins.

In both ancient documents and in recent commentaries the separate offering of the gifts seems to be taken for granted. There is little reflection as to possible theological or spiritual motivations for this practice.

GIRM 72 however seem to suggest that the reason for this rite is to somehow parallel the separate consecration of the two species and to reflect the gestures of Christ at the Last Supper:

"At the Last Supper Christ instituted the Paschal Sacrifice and banquet by which the Sacrifice of the Cross is continuously made present in the Church whenever the priest, representing Christ the Lord, carries out what the Lord himself did and handed over to his disciples to be done in his memory.

"For Christ took the bread and the chalice and gave thanks; he broke the bread and gave it to his disciples, saying, 'Take, eat, and drink: this is my Body; this is the cup of my Blood. Do this in memory of me.' Accordingly, the Church has arranged the entire celebration of the Liturgy of the Eucharist in parts corresponding to precisely these words and actions of Christ:

"1. At the Preparation of the Gifts, the bread and the wine with water are brought to the altar, the same elements that Christ took into his hands."

From a historical perspective, the separate offerings in the Roman rite would appear to stem from the ancient practice of each member of the faithful, or at least those intending to receive Communion, approaching the sanctuary after the Liturgy of the Word to offer bread and sometimes wine from their homes for the sacrifice.

In most Eastern rites the people left their gifts before Mass in a place designated for this purpose.

The Roman custom led to the development of an elaborate procession of the gifts and to the celebrant and other ministers receiving the gifts separately before placing them on the altar. During this period, however, the gifts were merely received and there were as yet no elevations or offertory prayers.

Once the gifts were paced upon the altar, the celebrant said the prayer over the gifts and then commenced the canon.

As the number of those receiving Communion dropped after the 10th century, the procession gradually disappeared from the liturgy. It has been restored, albeit symbolically, in the present Roman rite.

At the same time, a series of offertory rites, prayers and priestly "apologias" (prayers in which the priest admits his indignity before the celebration of the mystery and still found in the present rite) were added to the rite between the 10th to 13th centuries.

From this time, the rites of preparing the paten and chalice were taken up by the priest and deacon. Always retained were the separate offerings of both species. ZE04082421

Follow-up: Preparation of the Gifts [from 09-07-2004]

In our Aug. 24 column we replied to a question concerning the preparation of the chalice before Mass and the use of a single prayer of oblation.

A Dominican priest from Charlottesville, Virginia, has kindly pointed out that the celebrant who used the single prayer may have been a member of the Order of Preachers.

He writes: "In the Dominican Rite Low Mass the chalice was prepared before Mass and the oblation was made with a single prayer and single raising in both the Solemn and Low Masses. At Solemn High Mass the chalice was prepared during the Gradual.

"Both of these practices were also found in the liturgical family embracing the local uses of northern France and the Sarum Rite in England, from which family the Dominican Rite evolved.

"It is not uncommon for some Dominicans to use the old single oblation and to prepare the chalice ahead. The motive is nostalgia, not haste."

The priest adds that, while he harbors much affection for the Dominican rite, he himself never follows this practice since it is contrary to the spirit and rubrics of the Roman rite.

I believe that his is a prudent decision when celebrating Mass for a congregation. Otherwise, the faithful may be confused by the difference in rites.

All this serves to show, however, that, even before the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, the Latin Church was not an absolute liturgical monolith. It allowed for several particular rites, either those pertaining to venerable religious orders or to certain regions or dioceses such as Milan in Italy, Lyon in France, Braga in Portugal, and in Croatia where for centuries the Roman rite has been celebrated in Croatian. ZE04090722  

This article has been selected from the ZENIT Daily Dispatch © Innovative Media, Inc.

ZENIT International News Agency Via della Stazione di Ottavia, 95 00165 Rome, Italy www.zenit.org

To subscribe http://www.zenit.org/english/subscribe.html or email: [email protected] with SUBSCRIBE in the "subject" field

the presentation of the gifts

the presentation of the gifts

The Liturgy of the Eucharist: The Preparation of the Gifts

The Liturgy of the Eucharist At the Last Supper the Lord instituted the Paschal sacrifice and banquet and told his disciples to do it in memory of him. Through this the sacrifice of the Cross is continuously made present in the Church. The priest represents Christ the Lord and, like him, takes the bread and wine into his hands to say the same words as Our Lord so that the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ. The priest does this in memory of Christ, just as the first disciples did following the Last Supper.

In ancient liturgies this part of Mass was called the “Mass of the Faithful”: the first part of Mass, the “Mass of the Catechumens” was as far as those preparing for baptism could go in their initiation. They heard God’s Word, joined their prayers to the Prayer of the Faithful, but weren’t ready to participate in the deepest portion of the Eucharistic mystery. Even today the passage from the Liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Eucharist represents a change of gears: we’ve prepared, heard the Lord speak to us, and responded with faith, but now the Lord once again sacrifices himself for us. In this part of the liturgy the sacrifice he made on the Cross is made present for us, today, here and now.

If the emphasis in the first part of the liturgy was Word, faith, and response, the second part could be characterized as offering, sacrifice, and thanksgiving. Now the chair of the priest or bishop is no longer the focus, nor the ambo for the readings. The priest moves to the altar and remains there until after Communion: all attention is drawn to the sacrifice about to be made present on the altar, a sacrifice in which all are participating.

The Preparation of the Gifts Our Lord took bread and wine, blessed them, and then distributed them to his disciples and told them to do the same in memory of him. Bringing the bread and wine and placing them on the altar is at the core of the Preparation of Gifts, and now it becomes a moment for the faithful to offer something of themselves to Our Lord, which is why it’s also been known as the Offertory and, even today, the hymn sung at this point of Mass is known as the Offertory hymn or chant.

The Presentation of the Gifts In many celebrations of the Eucharist the faithful bring up the bread and wine to be used in Mass along with other gifts to serve the needs of the Church and of the poor. This hearkens back to when the faithful actually brought their own bread and wine for use in the Mass and brought it to the altar. This practice probably fell into disuse because it would make things somewhat chaotic today, and because it’s important, with so many varieties of bread and wine now available, to make sure the bread and wine used are suitable for worship.

Even though today the faithful aren’t those who directly prepare or buy the bread and wine that will become the Body and Blood of Christ, it is thanks to them that those offerings are possible. Typically on Sundays a collection is taken at this point that makes that bread and wine possible, and also gives the faithful an opportunity to contribute something to the Church and to those in need.

This moment of offering embraces both realities (providing for the Eucharist and providing for the needy), but the focus is coming forward with bread and wine for the transubstantiation into the Body and Blood of Christ during the Eucharistic Prayer. This is why the other offerings are received, but not treated the same way, since they’re for after the celebration of the Eucharist.

St. Augustine saw this procession as paralleling the procession up the aisles to receive Holy Communion. For him it was a “marvelous exchange” represented by the Incarnation: Christ takes our humanity to bestow on us his divinity ( Enarr . In ps. 129,7). We make offerings that will become him, become divine, and will transform us as well if we receive him worthily. Those few faithful bringing up the gifts are not the only ones offering something: we all offer something, if not materially, spiritually, so that our offering may be transformed into something pleasing to Our Lord, beneficial to us, and beneficial to others. It’s a small token of appreciation for what the Lord is about to offer us once again on the altar and in Communion.

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The Presentation of Gifts

The Presentation of Gifts

From the beginning of our Church, bread and wine have been brought forward by the people for the celebration of the Eucharist. In apostolic times, these gatherings took place in homes and privately-owned meeting rooms, and this presentation of gifts was a simple gesture of placing the bread and wine that would be blessed and shared at the altar. By the 3rd century, deacons assisted by collecting these gifts from the assembly who came forward bringing home-baked bread and flasks of wine. The deacons took some of the bread and wine to the altar. The rest they distributed to the poor who often lingered in the gathering areas of the church throughout the week. As this rite developed, other gifts for the poor and for the work of the church, such as candles, wheat, and grapes, were presented by the assembly.

As the number of people who participated in Communion declined and as the church changed to using unleavened bread, this procession of gifts gradually disappeared. By the 11th century, this presentation of bread and wine by the assembly was replaced by the collection of money. Vatican II restored this simple procession of bread and wine. Today, representative members of the assembly carry forward bread, wine, and gifts for the poor.

Music in Catholic Worship , 46, reminds us that this rite is meant to be very simple and secondary to the Eucharistic Prayer that will follow it.

The purpose of the rite is to prepare bread and wine for the sacrifice. The secondary character of the rite determines the manner of the celebration. It consists very simply of bringing the gifts to the altar, possibly accompanied by song, prayers to be said by the celebrant as he prepares the gifts and the prayer over the gifts. Of these elements the bringing of the gifts, the placing of the gifts on the altar, and the prayer over the gifts are primary. All else is secondary.

Bearing this in mind, we need to be careful that we do not add additional symbols or texts to this rite that would detract from the primary symbols of bread, wine, gifts for the poor, and prayer. It is not always appropriate to present other symbols, nor does a verbal explanation of the symbols contribute to the simple power of this rite. When preparing this ritual, pay attention to the following:

  • Music must serve the ritual action and never dominate. Although a solo or choral piece can be appropriate here, it cannot stall the flow of the liturgy by being too long in length for the ritual action. Unlike the gathering song, a song during the preparation of the gifts should end once the ritual action is completed.
  • Consider using an instrumental piece or even silence during this procession.
  • If a song is sung by the entire assembly at this time, consider inviting the assembly to stand for the last refrain or stanza of the song. This prepares the assembly for the posture of the prayer over the gifts and it subtly changes the energy of the liturgy from the more passive action of preparing the gifts to a more active stance of prayer over those gifts.
  • Instruct those who carry the gifts forward to hold them high and to walk slowly with purpose to the altar.
  • Consider having the gifts carried all the way to the altar and there, handed to the presider. The common practice of having the presider and acolytes wait at the foot of the altar to receive the gifts is possibly an unconscious remnant from the times when altar rails separated the faithful from the sanctuary. Of course, be conscious of those who may not be able to walk up steps if you have them around the altar.
  • Some parishes have revived the ancient practice of inviting the assembly to come forward to place their monetary gifts in baskets near the altar. This helps the assembly be less passive during this rite, it gives children the opportunity to actively participate in caring for the poor and supporting the ministry of the church, it makes our active participation in the work of the church more visible, and it gets people moving who may have been sitting in their pews for some time. Of course, the layout of your church and makeup of your assembly will determine if and how this could be a feasible action for your liturgies.
  • If you use baskets on poles to collect money from the assembly, consider using instead baskets without the poles. The ushers hand the basket to a person at the end of a pew, and this basket is passed from person to person. This enables the assembly to engage with one another rather than passively sitting and avoiding contact with their neighbor.

As simple as this action is, it can convey a deeper meaning of sacrifice, offering, participation, and discipleship. The “work of our hands” that we present is really us, ourselves. In that bread and wine and in the gifts we give, we place our very lives upon that altar, and we commit to give ourselves to each other, especially the poor. Our participation in presenting the gifts is a sign of our commitment to become what we will soon share—the Body and Blood of Christ.

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The Preparation of the Gifts and the Altar, Part I

The Preparation of the Gifts and the Altar, Part I

The preparation of the altar and the gifts in the Missal of Paul VI differs significantly in theology and in ceremony from the offertory elements of the Missal of John XXIII. Nevertheless, many, though not all, of the directives found in the former rubrics can help structure this part of Mass in a way which is both dignified and graceful. In so doing, the “traditional practice of the Roman Rite” mentioned in no. 42 of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) can enrich today’s celebrations of the Novus Ordo .

After the conclusion to the prayers of the faithful, the celebrant sits and the deacon goes directly from the place where he offered the intentions to the credence table or to the altar. According to long-standing custom, the credence table will be placed to the celebrant’s right as he faces the altar (whether celebrating ad orientem or versus populum ). The deacon is joined at the credence table by servers. If convenient, the deacon may bring the chalice from the credence table to the altar (GIRM 171b, 171e, 178), or he may wait at the altar for an instituted acolyte or other server to bring it to him there (GIRM 190). Customarily, the chalice is “vested,” that is, the chalice has with it a purificator, a paten with a host, a pall, a veil of the same material and color as the vestments of the day (or may be white, GIRM 118), and a burse containing a corporal. In the absence of a burse (which is not mentioned in the GIRM or in the Order for Mass , although its use is eminently practical), the corporal lays on the pall under the veil (See A. Mutel and P. Freeman, Cérémonial de la Sainte Messe , Artège, 110). When carrying the vested chalice, the deacon or server holds it by the node in his left hand, with his entire right hand resting flat on top of the veil (or burse) so that nothing falls. He carries it with the front of the veil (and the burse) facing outward—and he carries nothing else in his hands.

The deacon or the server places the chalice on the right hand corner of the altar, with the front of the veil facing the faithful. If there is a burse, a server may take it off the chalice, hold it open with both hands on either side of the burse so that the deacon can more easily retrieve the corporal (See Mutel and Freeman, 111). The deacon (or in his absence, a server) then unfolds the corporal in the middle of the altar such that its bottom edge will be an inch or two from the edge of the altar. With the folded corporal lying flat at the center of the altar, the deacon begins by unfolding a portion toward the left like a book, then to the right, then the top portion, and finally the bottom portion. The corporal is always unfolded and folded while it lays flat on the altar; it is never folded while held up in both hands over the altar. Alternatively, the deacon takes the burse and lays it flat on the altar with its opening facing to the right. With his left hand, he raises the flap of the burse, and with his right hand extracts the corporal from the burse and then proceeds to unfold the corporal as described above.

The deacon then turns to his right to the chalice, removes the veil, folds it, and places the folded veil (and the burse) in the hands of the server who brought the chalice or who accompanied him to the altar. He folds the veil while it lays flat on the altar; it is never folded while held in both hands above the altar. He places the pall (a roughly 6-inch rigid square that will cover the top of the chalice) near the top right corner of the corporal. He leaves the purificator draped over the chalice to the right side of the altar. The paten with the large host (and other hosts) can remain on the chalice and purificator, or it may be placed on the altar between the chalice and the corporal. (See Mutel and Freeman, 112)

A single additional chalice or ciborium is brought from the credence table to the altar by a server. The deacon places it on the corporal at the top right corner. If additional vessels are needed, beyond merely a single chalice or ciborium, additional corporals might be place on the altar, at first to the right hand side, either at the edge of the main corporal or at some distance from it, and then on the left hand side, away from the missal (See P. Elliott, Ceremonies of the Modern Roman Rite (Ignatius Press), 100). All the necessary corporals and purificators might be brought to the altar with the principal chalice either in a burse and/or under the chalice veil. Servers can bring additional vessels to the altar in a kind of procession, one behind the other, as the deacon places them in their proper locations, the chalices to his right side, the patens or ciboria to his left. The required purificators (which are used to wipe the rim of the chalice after the precious blood is received by the communicant) are placed near their corresponding chalices, along the edge of the corporal on which they rest. The additional chalices, ciboria, or patens already contain the elements in them which will be consecrated. Ciboria can be brought to the altar with their covers. During Mass, the deacon will have to attend to uncovering them and re-covering them at the proper time. However, the ciboria can also be brought to the altar without their covers, which remain at the credence table. Servers carry no more than one vessel in each hand. It may be preferable, especially with younger servers, for them to carry only one vessel in both hands.

Only after all the vessels are placed on the altar, a server brings the missal from the celebrant’s chair to the altar. Or, he may have brought it to the credence table first in order to place it on its stand or pillow and then proceed to take both to the altar once the preparation of the altar and the gifts is completed. The server brings the open missal (on its stand) to the altar and places it at an angle to the left of the main corporal, and insofar as is possible, off the corporal. The deacon or the server may turn the missal to the preparation of the gifts, if it is not already open to that page.

If there is no deacon assisting the priest for the celebration of Mass, an instituted acolyte or other server properly trained may take the role of the deacon described above. If there is no server suitable for these tasks available, perhaps because of age or stature, the priest himself should go to the altar at the conclusion of the prayers of the faithful to prepare the altar in the manner previously indicated. If there is no procession with the gifts, the celebrant goes directly from his chair to the altar after it has been prepared and bows to it upon arriving (Elliott, 102).

The next post will continue with a description of the postures and gestures involved in carrying out the prayers of preparation for the bread and wine. Many of the traditional practices of the Roman tradition can be helpful in making these gestures as graceful and as efficient as possible.

This is the ninth part of an ongoing series for Adoremus by Monsignor Caron on “Liturgical Traditions,” one that situates the Novus Ordo rites amidst the received liturgical observances, thereby helping us to understand today’s rites in their proper “hermeneutic of reform.” Read the previous parts of the “Liturgical Traditions” series by clicking here .

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The Liturgy: A Work of the Trinity, a Work of the Father

The Liturgy: A Work of the Trinity, a Work of the Father

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The Mass Explained

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The following commentaries on the Holy Mass one for each day of the month were first prepared for school use. They can easily be adapted for other uses.

the presentation of the gifts

Nevertheless, if the Holy Mass is the central act of our Catholic life, then Mass-going must surely remain one of the most indicative of these factors. With good reason therefore we consider the number of people coming to Mass, not only on Sundays but also very specially on weekdays. With even better reason we try to assess the "quality" of their participation in the Mass; their understanding of its nature and their application to their own lives of what it should mean for them. And we often think of the ways in which we can help them.

This is where our catechists on the Mass must come in: a constant catechesis, with big groups and small groups, with Sundays congregations and very particularly with the weekday ones; a constant and simple catechesis that is not afraid to drive home the basic points by dint of repetition.

The following commentaries one for each day of the month were first prepared for school use, with the idea of repeating them once every two or three months. They can easily be adapted for use on a different basis. The person-to-person style is no doubt more suited to the spoken word or to be put down in writing, but it seemed preferable not to change it.

Christ's action

The Holy Mass is the holiest thing we have here on earth. Why? Because it is the action of Christ. The main thing in the Mass is not what is read from the Holy Scriptures, even though this is the word of God and should be listened to as such. The main thing in the Mass is not what the priest preaches in his sermon nor what the people do or sing. The main thing is what Christ does. And what does Christ do in the Holy Mass? He offers himself for us, as he offered himself on the Cross. He sacrifices himself for us. That is why we say that the Mass is the same Sacrifice as that of the Cross renewed in an unbloody manner on the altar. On the altar just on the Cross, Christ offers his body and blood for us. The difference is that on the Cross his body and blood were visible to the eyes of those who were present, while in the Mass they are hidden under the appearances of bread and wine. But they are really present. This is the great fact. In each Mass, Christ is really present and renews the Sacrifice of the Cross.

Love for the Mass

"A man who fails to love the Mass fails to love Christ." 1 To love the Mass is a guarantee for salvation. But to love the Mass does not mean just being present and no more. It means to be present with faith and devotion. It means to take part in the Mass, realizing what it is: the Sacrifice of the Cross renewed on the altar; and realizing that when we go to Mass, we go, as it were, to Calvary. And that we should be present there, like our Blessed Lady beside the Cross, in loving contemplation of Christ who offers himself lovingly for each one of us.

The holy Eucharist is the "mystery of faith." Without faith, all you would see is bread and wine being offered, no more. Without faith, the most you could see in this is a gesture, a symbol, nothing more. With faith you know that at the moment of the Consecration which is when the priest says, "This is my body," "This is the cup of my blood" the bread and wine are changed into the body and blood of Jesus Christ who is then really present as God and as Man sacrificing himself for us on the altar as he sacrificed himself on the cross. If you come to Mass without faith, or with little faith you will easily get distracted and perhaps even bored. What a sad thing to get bored with Christ's sacrifice! Would we have been bored if we had been present at Calvary? If we hadn't faith, perhaps we would. Or at least we would have completely failed to understand what the death of that Man nailed to the cross really meant. You will only begin to understand the greatness of the Mass if you have faith. Stir up your faith. And then you will always be amazed at the Mass, you will realize that it is the greatest thing we possess here on earth.

The purposes of the Mass

What else should you do, besides having a lot of faith, if you want to attend Holy Mass well? You should identify yourself with Christ. You should remember the Scriptures and have "the same mind" "that he had on the cross (cf. Phil 2:5). The same mind which means the same purposes. What purposes did Jesus have on the cross? What was he concerned about? We can sum up his ends or purposes as four: to give glory to God the Father; to thank him; to make up for the sins of men; and to ask him for graces for us. If each time you go to Mass, you try to live at least one of these four purposes, you will attend Holy Mass well.

The first purpose: adoration

God is our Creator. He is the Lord of the whole world. We depend on him for everything. He is infinite, eternal, all-powerful. His infinite greatness and goodness ought to fill us with amazement and enthusiasm. When people get enthused about God, they want to praise him, they want to adore him. Jesus Christ, with his humanity, gave perfect glory to God the Father from the cross, and he continues to do so from the altar. If you unite yourself to him, you will be offering a perfect sacrifice of adoration and praise. Pay special attention to the Gloria and the Sanctus .

The second purpose: to give thanks

God is infinitely good. And all the good things we have, have come from him: life, family, sanctifying grace, faith, the sacraments, the gift of his Mother... And so many other natural and supernatural gifts. It is good to give thanks. The person who is too proud to say "Thank You" is not only ungrateful but is bound to end up being unhappy. Unite yourself to our Lord in the Mass, giving thanks, and you will see how you also become more optimistic as a result, because you will become more and more convinced of the goodness of God.

The third purpose: to make up for our sins

Jesus is perfect God and perfect Man. He is all-holy. Therefore he has not and could not have been guilty of any sin. But, as the Holy Scriptures says, he took our sins on himself and made up for them. He did penance for us by dying on the cross. If we want to take part properly in the Holy Mass, we must be sorry for our sins. The person who is not sorry for his sins will never understand or love the Mass, nor will he ever really take part in it. But the person who comes to Mass with real sorrow for his sins, will draw from it great strength to fight against temptations and to realize that, despite his weaknesses, God loves him very much.

The penitential act the "I confess" that we all say together at the start of the Mass does not pardon mortal sins. Forgiveness of mortal sins has to be obtained in the sacrament of penance. It is also important to remember that a person who has committed a mortal sin cannot go to communion unless he goes to confession beforehand. But the penitential act, if it is said well, certainly helps to obtain pardon for present venial sins as well as to stir up new sorrow for past sins that have already been forgiven. In this way it helps us to purify ourselves and so to take better part in the Holy Mass.

The fourth purpose: petition

Our God is a merciful and a very generous God. He longs to give. He wants to give us what is absolutely the best, what is the greatest gift imaginable: eternal life and all the help we need to make it ours. God wants to give. But he also wants to be asked: "Ask and you shall receive." That is why we ask with a prayer for petition. However, it is wise, when asking, to be able to back up our petition with some proof of special merit on our part. This is where we seem to run into a big difficulty. For when we look at ourselves, we see ourselves so full of defects and so lacking in merits that there seems to be no reason why God should ever heed our petitions. That is why we look to the merits of Christ, and to those of our Lady and the saints. That is why, if we are sensible, we unite our prayer to the prayer of Christ.

Christ's prayer is always effective because it is simply impossible that God the Father should not listen to the prayer of his beloved Son. Jesus prayed for us on the cross. He continues praying for us on the altar. When we pray in the Holy Mass, therefore, and unite our prayers to that of Jesus, we can be sure that our requests will be heard by God the Father.

Holy Scripture is God's word. God speaks to us in the inspired books, so that we can know what we have to believe and what we have to do, in order to get to heaven. After each reading we say, "Thanks be to God." Why do we say this? Because it is a wonderful thing that God speaks to us, that he addresses his words to us in these holy books, pointing out to us the way to heaven. It is another marvelous proof of his love for us. That is why we thank him.

The Gospel tell us of the life of Jesus Christ, true God and true Man. They tell us of the things he did and the words he spoke during his life here on earth. We stand at attention, as it were in order to listen to the Gospel. This should be a sign to others and a reminder to ourselves that we are ready and determined to put into practice what we are listening to. You will have noticed how, just before the priest begins to read the Gospel, he turns towards the altar or the tabernacle, bows down and prays. What he is doing is to ask God for grace to be able to proclaim the good news of the Gospel well. At that moment you too would do well to ask for grace to be able to listen to the Gospel joyfully, to understand it and to put it into practice.

This is said on Sundays and the bigger feasts. We declare our faith. Do we really believe in the things we say in the Creed? Of course! But do we realize how big these things are? We believe in God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who is One and Three, who created us, who redeemed us by means of his Son, Jesus Christ, who sanctifies us, giving us a share in his own life by means of grace, through the work of the Holy Spirit and that of the holy Church who forgives us always (always provided we are sorry and ask for his pardon), and who is determined to bring us to heaven. There are some people who live in a closed world, as if they were inside a tunnel. 2

Faith brings us out of the tunnel and let us live in the wonderful world of God. To declare our faith, as we do in the Creed, is something that should fill its with wonder, thanks and joy.

Presentation of the gifts

We have ended the liturgy of the word. Now we start the eucharistic liturgy in which the main actions of the Mass take place. The eucharistic liturgy is made up of three main parts: the presentation of the gifts, the eucharistic prayer or Canon (with the consecration), and the communion. In the presentation of the gifts (or the offertory) the priest (and we with him) offers the hosts some small particles of unleavened bread and small quantity of wine. What he offers is really very little. We could say that it has practically no value. But, it should represent us . If you want to learn to take proper part in the Holy Mass, it is important that you learn to offer yourself and to offer all that is yours in this moment of the Mass. 3 Take your work, your studies, your needs, your struggle, and even your weaknesses. Take all of that and put it on the paten beside the hosts, those small pieces of bread. Put it on the chalice with the wine.

Jesus Christ is going to come to this altar within a few minutes. There are many ways in which he could have chosen to come. But he has wished to come by marvelously turning the bread and the wine into his own body and blood. He has wished to come by means of transubstantiation, by which something that we offer him, something that is ours, is changed into his body and blood, while of the bread and wine only the appearances remain. The bread and the wine are our gifts, our offering to God. They will be your gift and your offering if you make them yours, if you put yourself there, on the paten with the bread, in the chalice with the wine. If you let yourself get distracted at the moment when the priest is offering the gifts, then the bread and the wine will be other people's gifts, something that other people offer to God. But they won't be your gifts, because you have not offered them, you have not offered yourself with them. Now do you see how important it is not to get distracted at the moment of the offertory?

We have seen how in the presentation of the gifts, we offer to God a little bread and wine. We have seen too that these offerings ought to represent us. In themselves they are things of little value, but our affection accompanies them. Now think of what is going to happen to these gifts of ours. At the moment of the consecration, God is going to change them into something divine: into himself. From bread and wine they become the body and blood of Jesus Christ, true God and true Man! Up to the moment of the consecration our offering to God has practically no value. From the moment on, it has infinite value! Doesn't this help you see the importance of offering yourself with the bread and the wine so that they represent your day, your life? If you do this you are participating in the Mass, and God will gradually do with your life what he does with the bread and wine. He will gradually turn your life your ordinary everyday life into something with divine value in his eyes. Your life your work, your rest, your sports, your friendships if you associate it closely to the Holy Mass, will be a sanctified life, which means sanctified work, sanctified rest, sanctified sports, sanctified friendships. Unite yourself well to the Holy Mass.

Orate, fratres

We have spoken of how we ought to offer ourselves on the paten with the bread, and in the chalice with the wine. You have probably noticed how the priest, before he offers the chalice, adds a few drops of water to the wine, the wine that will soon be turned into the blood of our Lord. These drops of water which are dissolved in the wine and therefore also turn into the Blood of Christ represent us and all that we offer to God with Christ. Consider what happens next. After offering the bread and wine, the priest turns to the people and invites them to pray "so that our sacrifice," he says my sacrifice and yours "may be acceptable to God the Father Almighty," Don't pass over this too lightly: the sacrifice of the Mass is Christ's action, Christ's sacrifice. But it is also the sacrifice of the priest and of the people. It is your sacrifice if you have made it yours, if you have really put some part of yourself into this sacrifice.

The Preface introduces the Canon which is the central and most solemn part of the Holy Mass. At the end of the Preface we say the Sanctus: "Holy, holy, holy Lord God..." It is like a song or a shout of enthusiasm. Let us think for a moment what our God is like. He is all powerful (he can do anything). He is infinite Love (he loves us as no one else could ever love us). He is all goodness and truth and greatness (he became Man out of love for us; he died on the cross to redeem us; and then he overcame death by rising again).

All of this should fill us with gratitude and joy. And then, like the saints and the angels in heaven, we will grow really enthusiastic about our God, we will want to praise him, and we will repeat the "Holy, holy, holy" with faith and fervor.

Consecration

The most solemn moment of the Holy Mass is the consecration. Up to that moment what is on the altar is bread and wine. From the moment when the priest pronounces the words of the consecration" This is my body"; "This is the cup of my blood" what is in the altar is the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Of the bread and wine nothing remains except the appearances. But, under those appearances, God is really present. All of this is done by the power of God. Jesus Christ is God become Man and he can do anything. He can even change a little bread and wine into his own body and blood so that it can be our offering and sacrifice: and also, if we are fit to receive him, so that it can be our food.

The priest raises the host and the chalice. And we adore Appearances will not deceive us if we have faith. With the eyes of our body we only see bread. But with the eyes of faith which is how the Christian soul sees we see and recognize our Lord himself. Let us express our faith. You remember those words of Saint Thomas, "My Lord and my God." Many people repeat them quietly to themselves at the moment of the elevation. Thomas wished to see the glorious Body of the risen Jesus. Then he proclaimed his divinity. Our Lord said to him, "Thomas, you believe because you can see me. Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe." Let us proclaim our faith in the real presence of Jesus in the host, relying for proof on his infallible word.

Consecration Communion

This is the moment of the Mass when we have to be most awake, putting heart and soul into many acts of faith and love and adoration. Because Christ is at last on the altar. There is no longer any bread or wine. By the miraculous process of transubstantiation all of it has been changed into the body and blood of Jesus Christ, God become Man. Our Lord is really present with his humanity and his divinity, offering himself for us on the altar just as he offered himself for us on the cross.

We are on Calvary. This is the "composition of place" that we should make in these moments. Christ is offering himself for us. We too should want to be beside him, like our Lady and Saint John who were beside him and kept him company on Calvary. Let us ask them to help us not to get distracted, to be present with faith, to realize what Jesus is doing as he offers himself on the altar for the whole humanity to adore him, to thank him.

The Mass is never a private action. Even if very few people or only a single person accompanies the priest, the whole Church is present. "Priests fulfill their chief duty in the mystery of the Eucharistic sacrifice. In it the work of our redemption continues to be carried out. For this reason, priests are strongly urged to celebrate Mass every day, for even if the faithful are unable to be present, it is an act of Christ and the Church." 4 Let us be conscious of this presence of the whole Church which, of course, also includes the angels and the saints. They are present and adoring from the moment of the consecration. If we ask them, they will help us too, to be present in a spirit of reverence and adoration.

The Our Father

The Eucharistic Prayer or Canon is the central part of the Mass. Now the moment for communion is approaching. As we end the Canon we begin our more immediate preparation for communion. And first of all we say the prayer that our Lord himself taught his disciples: "Taught by him, we dare to call God our Father he is the Almighty who created heaven and earth, and he is a loving Father who waits for us to come back to him again and again, as the story of the prodigal son repeats itself in our lives." 5 The Our Father contains seven petitions. We would do well to meditate on each one of them as they cover all of our most important needs.

Preparation for Communion

"This is the Lamb of God... Lord, I aim not worthy.. We are going to receive our Lord. On this earth, when we receive an important person, we bring out the best lights, music, formal dress. How should we prepare to receive Christ into our soul? Have we ever thought about how we would behave if we could only receive him once in a lifetime?" 6 We are not worthy to have him enter even once into our house, into our poor soul. Yet he is so eager to enter there very often. What we can and ought to do is to ensure that however poor the house of our soul is, it is clean. We cannot receive our Lord with a dirty soul, with a soul dirtied by sin. If we ever stain ourselves with a serious sin, then we have to get cleaned in the sacrament of penance before going to communion. We are not worthy to receive our Lord. But we must never receive him unworthily with a mortal sin on our soul that has not been confessed. It would be like the kiss of Judas. It would mean betraying Christ, striking him, crucifying him all over again.

"Happy are those who are called to his supper." "If you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man, you will not have life in you." "Anyone who eats this bread will live forever..." We come to Mass because we have felt ourselves invited to accompany our Lord in his sacrifice while he offers himself for us and to offer ourselves with him. We come to Holy Mass, therefore, to take part in the sacrifice of Christ. When the moment of communion comes, we feel that our Lord continues to invite us. Now he is calling us to his supper where he offers himself to us to be the food of our souls. How hungry we should be to receive him!

The soul needs its nourishment even much more than the body. But we should not forget that while the appetite of the body is generally spontaneous (three or four times a day we feel like eating), the appetite of the soul is rather reflexive and voluntary : it is a consequence of faith. Stir up your faith in him who is hidden beneath the appearances of bread: "Lord, I recognize you." Stir up your faith in his promises: "Anyone who eats this bread will live forever." And your hunger for communion will increase from day to day.

We should be so eager to receive him! Holy Communion is the greatest gift we could be offered. And yet some people are not interested! They could go to communion frequently; but they don't. And there are others who don't go to communion because their weaknesses get the better of them. But why don't they go to confession first, and then to communion? And then they will get strength , precisely to resist those weaknesses! But since God not only knows this but loves us, he has given us a source of special strength, of divine strength, in the sacrament. How eager we ought to be to receive them, especially those two which we can receive often, confession and communion.

We should put so much love into how we receive him! Always with faith, and always with love. If you really have faith, if you realize what it is you receive, you will receive him with love, just as it is with love that he comes to you. He comes to you with love, and you ought to receive him with love. There is no obligation to go to communion frequently. But if you do go to communion, then there is an obligation to receive him with love and affection. It would be such a lack of reverence to receive our Lord in a routine way, without trying to make many acts of faith and of love.

Holy Mass: self-giving

In the Mass, Christ offers himself for us. And in Holy Communion he offers himself to us. Think what this offering costs our Lord his whole passion! The Mass asks us also for correspondence and self-giving. If we attend Mass with faith, it will be easier for us to give ourselves to God each day trying to fulfill his commandments with love. And it will also be easier for us to give ourselves generously to other people, in a constant effort to love them, to understand them, to make their lives happier.

Opening prayer, prayer over the gifts, prayer after communion

In the Holy Mass we are praying constantly with Jesus and through Jesus. Remember, for instance, the prayer that we say before the readings, and those that come after the offertory and the communion. We ask for different things. But what matters most is that we always ask "through Jesus Christ our Lord." It has been said that the only prayer which reaches heaven with full effect is that of Jesus. Therefore when we pray through him in the Mass, we can be sure that our prayers reach God the Father and that he listens to them.

Mass: presence of God

There are so many other small details in the Mass that we can learn from. One is the fact that time and again throughout the Mass the priest says to the people he wishes them "the Lord be with you," and the people return him the same wish. Could we wish someone anything better? The Lord is going to be with us during the whole of the Mass, and we should try to be with him. And then he will also be more with us and we more with him during the rest of the day.

Sorrow for one's sin

The Mass is a sacrifice offered for the forgiveness of sins. We would not have proper dispositions for taking part in the Mass if we were not aware of our sins and sorry for them. That is why, as soon as the Mass has begun, the priest invites each one of us to call our sins to mind. And all of us pray together, acknowledging that we have sinned through our own fault in our thoughts and words, in what have done and failed to do. If you are not sorry for your sins you will never attend Mass well. Think at the moment therefore about your sins and your acts of selfishness, and ask Blessed Mary ever Virgin, and all the angels and saints, to pray for you and help you to be very sorry for those faults of yours which, even if they are not very grave, nevertheless disfigure the soul.

Thanksgiving

Christ offers himself for us in the Holy Mass, and he offers himself to us in Holy Communion. To be present at Mass, and receive Holy Communion, is the greatest thing we can do here on earth. Here, on the altar, we receive the greatest benefits that God gives us on earth. Once Mass has ended it is only logical that we remain for a few minutes giving thanks to our Lord. To leave without giving thanks would be a sign of little consideration or little faith. "The fact that the sacred function... has come to an end, does not dispense him who has communicated from making his thanksgiving. On the contrary it is most fitting that after he has received Holy Communion and after the Mass is over he should collect his thoughts and, in close union with his Divine Master, pass such time as circumstances allow in devout and salutary conversation with him." 7

Those moments, when one has received communion and the Mass has just ended, are the best moments to ask graces and favors from our Lord. He is so eager to give, but at the same time he wants us to ask. "Ask and you shall receive." Can there be any better moment for asking than when we are united with him, when he is inside us, brought there by his immense love towards each one of us? Don't waste those moments. Use them to pray for many things, for yourself, for your loved ones, for the Church, for the Pope, for souls everywhere, for the whole world...

  • J. M. Escriva, Christ is Passing By , no. 92.
  • J. M. Escriva, The Way , no. 575.
  • Cf. Vatican 11, Presbyterorum Ordinis , no. 5; Lumen Gentium , nos. 11 and 34.
  • Vatican II, Presbyterorum Ordinis , no. 13.
  • Christ is Passing By , no. 91.
  • Pope Pius XII, Mediator Dei , no. 130.

Additional Info

  • Author: Cormac Burke

Cormac Burke. "The Mass Explained." (Manila: Sinag-Tala Publishers, 1981).

Reprinted by permission of Sinag-Tala Publishers. All rights reserved. ISBN 971 554 014 7. The Mass Explained is currently out of print.

Nihil Obstat : Daniel V Flynn, J.C.D. Censor librorum. Imprimatur : Joseph T. O'Keefe Vicar General, Archdiocese of New York. April 11, 1980.

  • Publisher: Sinag-Tala
  • Alternate: http://catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0673.html

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the presentation of the gifts

Mass – Preparation Of The Gifts

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Preparation of the Gifts

Musical Walk Through The Mass   Prep Of Gifts

Following our recitation of the Creed and the Prayer of the Faithful, the Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the Presentation and Preparation of the Gifts, sometimes referred to as the Offertory.

During the presentation of the gifts many things occur simultaneously: the Presentation of the Gifts, the Preparation of the Altar, the Collection and while all of this is going on … we sing.

This moment of the liturgy also has been called the Offertory, not merely in reference to the monetary offerings that are brought forth. Traditionally, the Offertory refers to the priest preparing the gifts of bread and wine to be offered. The gifts include the bread and wine, the monetary gifts of the faithful and the very gift of ourselves in response to all we have heard in the Scriptures presented during the Liturgy of the Word.

The gifts are brought forward in procession. Music accompanies the procession and the preparation of the altar. Unlike the Entrance Song, the purpose of the music here is simply to accompany the ritual action. We all sing during this time to reveal that we are all part of the offering - our spiritual selves, just as Jesus is with us spiritually through the priest and the bread and wine, which become his body and blood.

The music chosen for the Presentation and Preparation of the Gifts will often mirror the Scriptures we have heard during the Liturgy of the Word and reinforce the challenges we hear in the homily. Last Sunday, we sang “Open My Eyes”, a direct response to the first reading from Isaiah (“the eyes of the blind will be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared”) and the Gospel account of the healing of the deaf man with a speech impediment.

Your challenge this week could be to absorb the words of the hymn we sing during this time. How do the words reflect the scripture we have heard? Could these words be my own? Can this song be my prayer today and through the coming week?

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The Art of Thoughtful Gifting: Why Presentation Matters

Remember the time you received a gift so beautifully wrapped that you couldn't help but savor every moment of unwrapping it? You carefully pulled off the silky ribbon, gently peeled the paper back, and paused to enjoy the suspense before revealing the contents inside. It was clear to you that the person who gave you the gift paid special attention to its presentation so you would know that they were thinking of you well beyond the time it took to pick out the present.

The wrappings, boxes, and bows are more than icing on the cake, they're a subtle message to the recipient that they matter enough to go the extra mile for. The excitement of receiving a beautifully presented gift makes the item inside seem even more special. At Olive & Cocoa, we've mastered the art of gift presentation. We strive to make sure every gift received comes with an unforgettable gifting experience. From the moment the crate is picked up from the porch, to the time the last item is pulled from the wrapping, this is what the receiver of your gift from Olive & Cocoa can look forward to.

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Most of our gifts arrive in an eco-friendly hand crafted wood crate. These beautiful, hot iron branded crates are a delightful addition to the present inside--something that reminds them of you and the thought you put into making sure they receive a gift with an unforgettable presentation. As an added bonus, our crates are fun to repurpose. From planters to storage boxes, the useful possibilities are many!

Satin Bow

Every gift we send on your behalf is topped with an elegant satin ribbon. This finishing touch is the first impression the recipient will have. Their eyes will delight in the beauty of the shimmering threads as their hands glide over the luxurious softness of the silky ribbon. These pleasant sensations create an exciting prelude to the next step in the gifting experience.

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Once the recipient finally pulls the ribbon loose and pops the lid off the crate, they'll be met with a fun confetti of shredded packing to protect the contents that's gathered together in a single sheet of high-quality, natural-toned paper and secured with an Olive & Cocoa signature sticker, creating an element of suspense! Gourmet food items are individually packaged in sanitary cellophane bags to ensure freshness. Non-food items are neatly arranged and nestled in the shredded paper.

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The most meaningful gifts are those that come from the heart. That's why each thoughtfully chosen gift from Olive & Cocoa comes with a special message written from you to the recipient on an elegant ivory card. You put together the perfect, heart-felt words and we'll take care of the calligraphy!

You take great care in choosing a meaningful gift, something that perfectly befits the one you are sending it to. With the right presentation, the gift you give comes with an especially meaningful experience for the recipient. Make the gift you send even more delightful to receive by sending it the Olive & Cocoa way!

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The Presentation of the Lord: a symbol of the Messiah’s embrace

ACI Prensa

February 2, 2024 Catholic News Agency News Briefs 1 Print

the presentation of the gifts

ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 2, 2024 / 04:00 am (CNA).

Every Feb. 2, the universal Church celebrates the feast of the Presentation of the Lord. Mary and Joseph bring the newborn Jesus to the Temple, the holy place, the house of God. The presentation of the firstborn son is equivalent to his “consecration” — it is an act of thanksgiving for the gift received from the hands of the Creator, the source of life.

In the Temple, the Holy Family — Jesus, Mary, and Joseph — meet two elderly people, faithful keepers of God’s law: Simeon and Anna. That simple event contains a profound Christian symbolism: It is the embrace of the Lord of his people, who await the Messiah. That is why the liturgy sings: “You, Lord, are the light that enlightens the nations and the glory of your people Israel” (Acclamation before the Gospel, Lk 2:32).

The Law of Moses

On this day, simultaneously, we remember the ritual purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary after she gave birth to the Savior: “When the time for Mary’s purification according to the Law of Moses had passed, she and Joseph brought the child to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, according to what is written in the law, ‘Every firstborn male child shall be consecrated to the Lord,’ and also to offer, as the law says, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons” (Lk 2:22-24).

According to the ancient custom of the people of Israel, 40 days after the birth of a firstborn child, he was to be brought to the Temple for his presentation. For this reason, the Church counts 40 days after Christmas Day (Dec. 25) to the feast of the Presentation of the Lord on Feb. 2.

The prophecies of Simeon and Anna

Arriving at the Temple, the parents of Jesus with the child in their arms meet Simeon, the man whom the Holy Spirit promised would not die before seeing the Savior of the world. It was the same Spirit who put in the mouth of this prophet that this little child would be the Redeemer and Savior of mankind:

“This child is destined to bring about the fall of many in Israel, and also the rise of many others. He was sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will come to light, and a sword will pierce your own soul” (Lk 2: 34-35, from the Canticle of Simeon, Lk 2:22-40, known as “Nunc Dimittis” because of the Latin words with which it begins: “Now you leave”).

“Also that day there was in the Temple the daughter of Phanuel, of the Tribe of Asher, named Anna. She was a woman of very advanced age; she had been widowed only seven years after her marriage and remained so until she was 84 years old. Anna walked day and night in the Temple, worshipping God, offering fasting and prayers. When she saw the child, she recognized him and began to proclaim to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem that salvation had come” (Lk 2:36-38).

This story is from ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, and has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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Ten Ways to Involve Visual Artists In Your Church Tomorrow

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As you may have seen in my previous article , the entire course of my life was changed when a pastor found a use for my artistic talents in the local church. It was a relatively small project, but it opened doors, which revealed other abilities, which led to a very fulfilling artistic life of ministry. I am convinced I am not an anomaly. I believe there are frustrated artists all over the body of Christ, who would love to serve with their gifts but don’t think those gifts are wanted or don’t believe their gifts fit the mission of the church. Here are ten ways to incorporate visual artists into your church tomorrow  

As a church leader, I know that is not that case. I believe there are a multitude of church leaders who would love to have people serving God with all their gifts. I know we all have projects we deeply desire to do, if only we had people with the gifts to do them, and maybe it’s time we ask, “Are we sure we don’t have these gifted people in our midst?” I think in many cases, it’s a matter of not knowing who we have and what’s possible. Let’s explore some of those possibilities.

1. Presentation Graphics

The old adage is true. A picture really is worth a thousand words. Pictures help us to communicate and more than that they help us remember and retain information. According to the Social Science Research Network, “Since 65% of people are visual learners, one of the best ways to drive the message home is through visual content.” fast company.com  Most churches use some sort of visual media in their worship services, and church leaders who are also visual artists are likely few and far between. That being said, there is likely someone who could create compelling, memorable images that will help people to retain and apply the important messages presented to our congregations. We just need to find and empower them.  

2. Illustration

How many times have you had someone come up to you frustrated because they missed out on something in the church? In your heart, you know it was in the announcements, the newsletter and the bulletin, but somehow they missed them all. Maybe you need to give them a picture. Sure you can download clip art, but does clip art give someone in your care the opportunity to stretch their wings and use their God-given gifts? I think not. Maybe you have a booklet that needs a cover, or a community outreach that needs a poster. Maybe you need some coloring pages for the children that will allow them to be involved in the service in a way that they can understand. All of these things could be greatly enhanced by an illustrator, and chances are there is someone in your midst who would love to do these things, if they were just asked.  

3. Publication/Web Design

Most churches have newsletters, websites and other ways of disseminating information. Some churches are blessed to have media people on staff, but when one considers, according to the Washington Post , the average church as of 2023 is now 60 people, a lot of that work is falling on the pastor or the church secretary. And in such small congregations, more than likely, those peoples’ time and skills are stretched to the limit. The good news is somewhere in your congregation is likely a person or persons with the skills to help make these publications informative and attractive. Seek out your artistic people. Offering them the opportunity to serve just might bless the whole congregation.  

4. Sanctuary Decor

Some people just have a knack for making a sanctuary feel warm and inviting. Changing things up on a fairly regular basis can keep things fresh and exciting. Imagine you’re starting a sermon series, and you have someone who can make an environment that draws people into the message. One church I know of had a team that would paint the most amazing backdrops for their platform area. Every time there was a new series, there was a new environment created for the sake of helping people to absorb and engage. Do you have someone who has this kind of flair? Give them the chance to bless your congregation.

5. Teaching Art to Others

In our communities there are likely a lot of people who would love to make art, if only they knew how. The proliferation of “Paint and Sip” businesses shows this to be the case. At my church, we do this as a community outreach. We leave the “sipping” out, replaced with more “church friendly” refreshments, and we have a wonderful time. It gives people from the community the opportunity to connect with us in a fun, low pressure environment. My church has also experimented with creative arts clubs in the afternoon and I’ve heard of churches that offer art classes to homeschool and other community groups.  

6. Painting in the Worship Service

There are as many different ways to do this as there are artists. Some churches will just provide an open space in the front of the church for people to create works inspired by the service.   While others do works that are pre-determined by leadership based on the message. In my ministry, I paint during the worship music, attempting to create an image that makes people wonder, “Why did he paint that?” In so doing, they listen intently, and they are quite literally “drawn” into the message. Live painting in the service, can be another way to engage the senses. In a former church, I would paint every Sunday in connection with the message, and then we would hang the art around our rented sanctuary. What blessed my heart was hearing people share with visitors the messages associated with those paintings, weeks, months and even years after I preached those messages. Isn’t that what we desire?  

7. Children’s Lessons

If someone is wanting to introduce art into the ministry of their church, I usually suggest they start with the children’s ministry. People are used to illustrated teaching tools for children, not to mention using crafts to help students retain the lessons. Create arts and crafts projects that line up with the curriculum you’re teaching. Pablo Picasso once said, “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Art is a great tool for teaching children, and using that tool is a great way to involve artists in your ministry. Then as the congregation becomes more comfortable with using art in your ministry, allow your artists to branch out to other ministries.  

This is another ministry for artists that often starts in the children’s area. I once spoke with one of the more famous artists in the church and he lamented this idea, speaking to the almost obligatory Noah’s ark mural in the nursery. I had a very different experience. Painting a backdrop for Vacation Bible School (a kind of portable mural) led to a call to ministry that has taken me all over the United States. In my conversation, I was tempted to paraphrase actor Konstatin Stanislavsky who once said, “There are no small parts, only small actors.” Everything we do as artists in service to God does not need to hang in the Louvre. Some projects are just small things done with great love. I have found in the church, faithfulness often leads to opportunity, or as the master said in Jesus’ Parable of the Talents, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.” (ESV) Any creative opportunity can be used to empower and encourage artists in the church. You simply have to find the right person for the right project.  

9. Gifts and Awards

Speaking of “well done,” recognizing someone for a job well done is something all churches should do, and what better recognition is there than a wonderful, hand crafted work of art. Commission one of your artists to create a gift and/or award, and two people will be blessed.  

10. Art at Outreach Events

Again, to some artists, things like this may seem simplistic, but I have had some very rewarding times of ministry doing simple things. I have participated in several church outreach events, where I did Madonnari, AKA Italian Street Painting, where we block off a large portion of asphalt and using chalk pastels turn it into a work of art. Then there was the time when I was scheduled to do another street painting, but it rained, so I ended up with paper and sharpies drawing cartoons for the people. Before long there was a line of people, all making their requests, and me and a few other artists drawing as fast as we could to meet the demand. It wasn’t high art, but it was fun. In the midst of the drawing, we had the opportunity to talk to the people as we worked. It was a great conversation starter.

Speaking of captive audiences, there is no greater captive audience activity than face painting. Where else can you have a five minute conversation with someone who cannot move? Is it high art? No, but it can lead to some really great things.  

Needless to say there are more than ten ways to incorporate visual artists into your church tomorrow. There are as many ways to incorporate artists into your ministry as their artists, and with a little creativity, you can help them to thrive and succeed. It is really only limited by your imagination. Now to be clear, artists are not a monolithic group. We’re diverse and none of us can do it all. We all do some things better than others. There are things we prefer to do and things we prefer not to do, but I do believe, with a little creativity, we can find places for our creative people to serve in the body of Christ, and given the opportunity, many will serve passionately and take real ownership. They just need you to give them the opportunity.  

For more ideas on ways to incorporate artists into your ministry., I wrote a little e-book called Ministering to the Creative Soul. Click here to get download your free copy.

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Running in 12-year cycles, each year of the traditional East Asian lunar calendar corresponds to one of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac. With the Chinese New Year on February 10, 2024, we welcome the Year of the Dragon .

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Celine Dion is back at music’s biggest night.

The star made a surprise appearance at the 2024 Grammy Awards on Sunday, wearing a Valentino Haute Couture coat and gown to present the album of the year award to Taylor Swift.

She hugged the mustard yellow coat over the pale pink gown, which featured a thigh-high slit and sweetheart neckline.

Dion, 55, paired the layered look — which came straight off the label’s spring/summer 2024 Couture runway, presented in Paris less than two weeks before the musical awards show — with a dazzling statement necklace and Gianvito Rossi Rania Pumps .

“When I say that I’m happy to be here, I really mean it from my heart,” the music icon told the audience, recalling accepting the same coveted gramophone trophy from Diana Ross and Sting 27 years ago.

Celine Dion

While the singer’s appearance amid her ongoing health battle wasn’t previously reported, a backstage video of her arriving at the Crypto.com arena began to circulate during the show.

“Celine Dion is in the building for the #Grammys with stylist Law Roach,”  the Hollywood Reporter tweeted of the retired Hollywood self-titled Image Architect, who teased the evening by posting a name tag reading “Hello I am unretired” on Instagram .

Celine Dion

The six-time Grammy winner has largely stayed out of the spotlight since she told fans she was diagnosed with stiff person syndrome — “a very rare neurological syndrome, which affects something like one in a million people” — in an emotional social media video in 2022.

“I’ve been dealing with problems with my health for a long time, and it’s been really difficult for me to face these challenges and to talk about everything that I’ve been going through,” she added of the chronic condition, which causes rigidity and spasms in the trunk and limbs,  according to the Cleveland Clinic .

She subsequently canceled her “Courage” tour , while assuring fans that she is “not giving up,” and “can’t wait to see” them again.

Celine Dion

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“It’s not fair to you to keep postponing the shows, and even though it breaks my heart, it’s best that we cancel everything now until I’m really ready to be back on stage again,” she wrote at the time.

The star’s sister, Claudette Dion, shared an update with 7 Jours in December, per the Daily Mail , saying that the “My Heart Will Go On” singer had “lost control of her muscles.”

“It’s true that in both our dreams and hers, the goal is to return to the stage,” she shared with the outlet.

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the presentation of the gifts

IMAGES

  1. 5:30 Vigil Mass

    the presentation of the gifts

  2. Presentation of the gifts during the first mass of a newly ordained

    the presentation of the gifts

  3. The Preparation of the Gifts and the Altar, Part II

    the presentation of the gifts

  4. Photos: St. Paul Catholics celebrate Holy Thursday

    the presentation of the gifts

  5. The Preparation of the Gifts

    the presentation of the gifts

  6. Roman Catholic priest, altar boys, preparation of the gifts Stock Photo

    the presentation of the gifts

COMMENTS

  1. Explanation of the Mass

    During the presentation and offering of the gifts, we find the following elements: The offertory procession, the presentation of the bread, the mixing of the wine with water and its offering, the private prayer of the minister, the incense, the lavabo and the prayer over the offerings.

  2. A Significant Moment in Our Prayer: The Presentation of the Gifts

    The physical act of carrying the gifts of bread and wine forward to the priest is meant to serve as a tangible reminder of the fact that we are all called to stewardship and, most importantly, that we are gathering at the table to share in the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith.

  3. Presentation of the gifts, preparation of the altar

    What is the presentation of the gifts? The presentation of the gifts marks the beginning of the second major part of the Mass, the Liturgy of the Eucharist. This preparation also has been traditionally called the offertory, since the priest prepares the gifts to be offered.

  4. Ask the Register: how do I bring up the gifts?

    The presentation of the gifts by the faithful is not an essential component of the Mass, but it's a beautiful, symbolic gesture. The practice goes back even to the early Church. In the 2nd Century, St. Justin Martyr wrote: "When our prayer is ended, bread and wine with water are brought forth, and the president offers prayers and ...

  5. The Preparation of the Gifts

    In the fourth part of this series, we begin a new part of the Mass, the Liturgy of the Eucharist, with the preparation of the gifts.#UnderstandingTheMass #Ca...

  6. Why do we present gifts during Mass?

    The prayer over the gifts from the sixth day in the octave of Christmas uses Augustine's language: "Lord, receive our gifts in this wonderful exchange: from all you have given us we bring you these gifts, and in return, you give us yourself." Valid matter

  7. The Mass Part 4: Presentation of the gifts

    Before moving forward let's review. One week ago, we saw that the church considers the Liturgy of the Word power-packed. What the liturgy's actions say, the word of God enacts, or as the "Catechism of the Catholic Church says: "The liturgical word and action are inseparable both insofar as they are signs and instruction and insofar as they accomplish what they signify."

  8. Liturgy Matters

    At the conclusion of the Prayer of the Faithful at Mass, the Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the Presentation and Preparation of the Gifts. The congregation is seated. The hospitality ministers take up the collection. Members of the assembly prepare to bring the bread and wine to the altar along with gifts for the poor.

  9. Preparation of the Gifts

    The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), No. 73, permits the chalice to be prepared at the credence table rather than at the altar, but always during the preparation of the gifts. It is usually preferable, however, to prepare the chalice at the altar so that the faithful may observe the meaningful rite of adding the water to the wine ...

  10. PDF V. Preparing the Gifts and our Hearts

    It begins with its own introductory rite whose purpose is to prepare the Altar / Table and gifts, as well as the faithful, for this next part of Mass. The Liturgy of the Eucharist includes taking up our monetary gifts, a song during the preparatory rite, preparation of the Altar, and the presentation and preparation of the gifts.

  11. The Liturgy of the Eucharist: The Preparation of the Gifts

    The Presentation of the Gifts In many celebrations of the Eucharist the faithful bring up the bread and wine to be used in Mass along with other gifts to serve the needs of the Church and of the poor. This hearkens back to when the faithful actually brought their own bread and wine for use in the Mass and brought it to the altar.

  12. The Presentation of Gifts

    13 Sep 2004 The Presentation of Gifts by Diana Macalintal | posted in: Eucharist, liturgy 0 From the beginning of our Church, bread and wine have been brought forward by the people for the celebration of the Eucharist.

  13. The Preparation of the Gifts and the Altar, Part I

    Only after all the vessels are placed on the altar, a server brings the missal from the celebrant's chair to the altar. Or, he may have brought it to the credence table first in order to place it on its stand or pillow and then proceed to take both to the altar once the preparation of the altar and the gifts is completed.

  14. PDF The Mass Part 4: Presentation of the gifts

    In the eucharistic prayer, we will ask God to send the Spirit to change the gifts and change us as well — but, again, I'm getting ahead of myself. The gift of ourselves is never easy, and the church, knowing that, treats our offerings with great care. The priest places them in a dignified place on the altar, incenses them reverently, and ...

  15. The Mass Explained

    Presentation of the gifts. We have seen how in the presentation of the gifts, we offer to God a little bread and wine. We have seen too that these offerings ought to represent us. In themselves they are things of little value, but our affection accompanies them. Now think of what is going to happen to these gifts of ours.

  16. Mass

    Mass - Preparation Of The Gifts. The celebrant prepares the alter and the gifts for the presentation to God. - if there is no music the celebrant may say the following prayer allowed -. Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation. which earth has given and human hands have made. It will become for us the bread of life.

  17. Presentation of the gifts catholic mass

    Presentation of the gifts catholic mass How do you bring up the gifts at Mass? They move toward the gift table together after the close of the Prayer of the Faithful. The gifts may be brought up reverently when the priest and altar servers have moved in front of the altar and await them there.

  18. Preparation of the Gifts

    Preparation of the Gifts. September 21, 2021 - 8:11am. Musical Walk through the Mass: Part 5. Following our recitation of the Creed and the Prayer of the Faithful, the Liturgy of the Eucharist begins with the Presentation and Preparation of the Gifts, sometimes referred to as the Offertory. During the presentation of the gifts many things occur ...

  19. Presentation of the Gifts

    Provided to YouTube by Jesuit Communications Foundation, Inc.Presentation of the Gifts · Hangad · Natthan Dublin · Traditional · Kenneth Dacanay · Kenneth Da...

  20. Living the Mass: The Presentation of the Gifts

    In the Presentation of the Gifts, we begin the work of sharing our time, talent, and treasure. How do we continue this work during the other six days of the ...

  21. presentation of gifts Crossword Clue

    presentation of gifts Crossword Clue The Crossword Solver found 30 answers to "presentation of gifts", 10 letters crossword clue. The Crossword Solver finds answers to classic crosswords and cryptic crossword puzzles. Enter the length or pattern for better results. Click the answer to find similar crossword clues . Enter a Crossword Clue

  22. The Art of Thoughtful Gifting: Why Presentation Matters

    At Olive & Cocoa, we've mastered the art of gift presentation. We strive to make sure every gift received comes with an unforgettable gifting experience. From the moment the crate is picked up from the porch, to the time the last item is pulled from the wrapping, this is what the receiver of your gift from Olive & Cocoa can look forward to.

  23. The Presentation of the Lord: a symbol of the Messiah's embrace

    The presentation of the firstborn son is equivalent to his "consecration" — it is an act of thanksgiving for the gift received from the hands of the Creator, the source of life. In the ...

  24. Best Christmas Gift Baskets 2023

    Christmas Gifts Sets. If you're on the hunt for the best Christmas gift basket ideas, our unique Christmas gift sets are always a hit. We offer a variety of Christmas baskets from delightful fruit gifts and decadent chocolate to savory snacks and premium Christmas baked goods, there's a Christmas basket everyone will enjoy.Choose from some of our best gift basket varieties and Christmas ...

  25. Ten Ways to Involve Visual Artists In Your Church Tomorrow

    Presentation Graphics. The old adage is true. A picture really is worth a thousand words. Pictures help us to communicate and more than that they help us remember and retain information ...

  26. Celebrate the Year of the Dragon at The Met Store

    Purchase, Sir Joseph Hotung and The Vincent Astor Foundation Gifts, 2001 200 The dragon is one of the most ubiquitous motifs in Chinese art. It indicates the cardinal direction east; bears associations with water; is an emblem of imperial rule; and serves as a symbol of protection, happiness, and fertility.

  27. Celine Dion makes surprise Grammys 2024 appearance in couture coat and gown

    Celine Dion is back at music's biggest night. The star made a surprise appearance at the 2024 Grammy Awards on Sunday, wearing a Valentino Haute Couture coat and gown to present the album of the ...

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    The McKnight Brain Institute marked its 25th anniversary with a full-day symposium on February 2, 2024. The event included a brief presentation from Director, Dr. Jen Bizon, about the institute's history; a keynote lecture from Dr. Adam Gazzaley from the University of California, San Francisco; and a panel of rising faculty members discussing the future…